He points out that there are
effectively no ships available to support any request from NATO, let alone
fulfill normal domestic requirements. As Matt Gurney wrote in the same newspaper, “Canada does not
currently meet even the modest military thresholds required to provide domestic
security, and on the international scene, threats materialize faster than we
can muster the strength to respond to them”.
Against this background is a
previous decision by the RCN to discard a planned $100M mid-life refit plan for the twelve vessels of the Kingston class.
The Kingston class consists of 12 coastal
defence vessels. Also known as Maritime Coastal Defence Vessels (MCDV) these
multi-role vessels were built and launched from the mid- to late-1990s and are largely
crewed by members of the Naval Reserve.
Their main missions are
coastal surveillance, sovereignty patrol, route survey, and training. They were
designed with a minesweeping role in mind however this role has diminished as a
result of the evolving nature of mine warfare and not having been equipped with
the appropriate equipment necessary to undertake the mission.
As with all naval ships the
Kingston-class patrol vessels represent some design compromises. The program
was conceived to advance the use of commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) equipment
and construction techniques in a ship designed to military specifications.
The engines, although quite
powerful and fuel-efficient, are being used with a hull shape designed for
minesweeping. This prevents the ship from achieving a high speed compared to
the patrol vessels of other nations, which are considerably faster. However,
the Kingston’s'
top speed is faster than that of most mine warfare vessels and is comparable to
most large non-naval seagoing vessels.
Unlike other Mine warfare
vessels the Kingston
class was built with conventional steel hulls. The vessels are, however,
equipped with a magnetic degaussing system that allows the ship's magnetic
signature to be manipulated to minimize vulnerability to magnetic mines.
In an attempt to make the
vessels truly ‘multi-role’ the Kingston class are designed to carry up to three
20-foot (6.1 m) ISO containers with power hookups on the open deck aft in order
to embark mission-specific payloads. The available modules included:
·
Indal
Technologies AN/SLQ 38 deep mechanical minesweeping systems
·
MDA Ltd. AN/SQS
511 heavy-weight high-definition route survey systems
·
ISE Ltd.
Trailblazer 25 bottom object inspection vehicle
·
ISE Ltd. HYSUB 50
deep seabed intervention system
·
Fullerton and Sherwood Ltd. 6-man, 2-compartment containerized
diving systems
·
Naval engineered
6-person accommodation modules
·
MDA Ltd. Interim
Remote Mine hunting and Disposal System
The original mid-life refit
plan was intended to allow the retention of the ‘mid-lifed’ vessels through
2045–2055, however the RCN concluded that the money would be better spent in
acquiring a new platform. It was hoped that the MCDVs would be replaced by new
vessels to enter service in 2020.
As of this date, a contract
for the construction of new ships to replace the Kingston class has not been signed. The only
new ships, on the distant horizon, configured for a similar mission are the Arctic/Offshore Patrol Ships (AOPS) for
whom current design constraints will
render them not much more useful then the Kingston class for the surveillance
and sovereignty roles and of no use at all for the reserve training and mine
warfare roles.
As it stands now the Canadian
Navy is hard pressed for both recruits and operating funds as well as the
numbers of ships necessary to maintain the ‘critical mass’ necessary to have a force of use to Canada.
The solution to this problem
can be found in our past. Our Navy needs to reconsider the corvette. With their
storied history vessels of this class could fit into the present and future of
the RCN. With modern corvettes, the Navy would acquire vessels able to fulfill
its domestic waters patrol mandate far more economically than its current major
warships and fulfill many of the overseas tasks we are currently engaged in.
Needless to say, this is not
the first time that this remedy has been advocated. On 2 June 2003, Mr. John Dewar testified to the
Standing Senate Committee on National Security and Defence that Canada
should purchase a corvette-sized ship, also called a ‘cutter,’ for use by the
navy in the performance of law enforcement functions.
He recommended a vessel
measuring 75 meters that was able to operate in a high sea-state, move quickly
(25 knots minimum using diesel propulsion), and remain at sea for 30 days. He
said that a landing deck or hanger for a large maritime helicopter like the Sea
King is essential. A helicopter would assist in the identification of ships and
extend the visible range from the vessel.
A modern corvette, which
meets many of Mr. Dewar’s criteria, such as the STYX Canadian Marine PV85 has a core ships company of 35 compared to a Halifax
class frigate which requires a crew of 180. It stands to reason that a PV85-based corvette would be substantially less expensive to operate then a frigate with a
hull almost twice as long and a displacement 2.5 times greater.
The Danish Knud Rasmussen-class is another
example of an offshore patrol vessel which would meet Canadian needs. The
ships' normal tasks include fisheries inspections, environment protection,
search and rescue, sovereignty enforcement, icebreaker assignments, towage and
salvage operations and general assistance to the Danish and Greenland
governments (including police tasks).
Like the original Kingston MCDVs the
Knud Rasmussen is designed to take multiple mission modules, in this case using
StanFlex modular mission
payload slots (one on the foredeck, the other aft of the superstructure), which
can be fitted with a multi-purpose gun, surface-to-air missiles, or ASW
torpedoes, along with other non-weapon payloads. Another two container
positions are "prepared for" but not installed.
Mercantile standards were
used for the original MCDVs, primarily as a cost-cutting measure. Just as
commercial-off-the-shelf parts and equipment were used wherever possible, the
hull was adapted from an existing civilian design for an offshore supply
vessel. The design used steel in its construction, a material familiar to most
Canadian shipyards. These standards are common in the kind of modern corvettes
being considered and the ships could easily be built in Canada.
That they could be built is
not the question, the question is “will they be built?”
It should be pointed out that
the RCN analyses that lead to the decision to cancel the MCDV mid-life update
was badly flawed. The belief by that service that the Department of National
Defence can consistently and reliably procure new ships is not based in
reality. If the RCN had understood, as an institution, that it was far more
likely to be able to find funding and consensus for a mid-life update then for
entirely new ships then they would have made better choices, or at least
choices more likely to have tangible results.
If, in the future, the
Government and the DND/CF re-acquire the ability to consistently and
efficiently procure new warships for our Navy then Corvettes would be a useful
addition to a useable fleet.
Sorry, NATO — We’re fresh out
of warships
Matt Gurney: Ukraine
crisis shows need for larger Canadian military
The Kingston Class: Mid-Life or Move Over for
MCDVs?
Kingston-class coastal defence
vessel
Arctic/Offshore Patrol Ships
(AOPS)
The Arctic Offshore Patrol
Ship
A USEABLE NAVY
Operation CARIBBE
Canada's Coastlines: The Longest Under-Defended Borders in
the World
STX Canadian Marine/STX US Marine
Knud Rasmussen-Class
Ocean Patrol Vessels, Denmark
StanFlex
